Lagertha

Lagertha (756-) was the first wife of Ragnarr Lodbrok and the mother of Bjorn Ironside. She later became the ruler of Hedeby after killing her second husband, Jarl Sigvard of Hedeby, and she reigned as ruler until Harald Fairhair and Ivar the Boneless allied against her and defeated her.

Biography
Lagertha was born in 756, and she was raised as a shieldmaiden (female warrior) by her father. She was originally enamored with Rollo Sigurdsson, but she later married his brother Ragnarr Lodbrok, as Lodbrok had fulfilled the challenge of killing a bear and a hound guarding Lagertha's home. She gave birth to Bjorn in 781, and she later gave birth to Gyda Ragnarsdottir. Lagertha occasionally accompanied her husband on his expeditions, but she also had to deal with the intrigues of Earl Haraldsson and Rollo; Rollo's attempts to wn over Lagertha failed, while Haraldsson was killed in single combat with Lodbrok. Lagertha and Bjorn later left Lodbrok after he had an affair with Aslaug, a woman whom he caught bathing, due to Lagertha's miscarriage, something which Lodbrok thought was against a prophecy. Lagertha remarried to Sigvard of Hedeby, and, after she publicly killed her abusive husband, she was acclaimed as the new Jarl of Hedeby. The King of Wessex offered her hospitality after she sought to establish a fertile settlement there, and, despite having an affair with Lagertha, the King betrayed her and had her settlement burned to the ground. Meanwhile, her commander Kalf had usurped Hedeby, and Lodbrok only offered diplomatic support to Lagertha during her quest to regain it. She then took part in her husband's siege of Paris, and she later agreed to share Hedeby with Kalf. She seduced Kalf, persuaded him to become betrothed with her, and killed him just before her wedding, becoming Jarl once again. She was wounded while taking part in her husband's second siege of Paris, where he fought against Rollo, now a French vassal. Lagertha later attacked Kattegat and imprisoned Aslaug's sons Ubbe and Sigurdr, and she killed Aslaug to reclaim the title of Queen. Later, she became rivals with Harald Fairhair, who was captured during a failed attempt to capture Kattegat. She later allied with the Sami king Svase against Harald and his ally Ivar the Boneless, and Rollo contributed Frankish troops to Ivar's cause, helping him defeat Lagertha and conquer her realm.